Don't Worry My Love
by Avalon 0551
Summary: Wolfram is injured on a patrol. Yuuri and Wolfram must unravel the enemy's agenda before it's too late. As tensions rise, everyone becomes a threat. Time is set two years after Yuuri and Wolfram's marriage. Developed malexmale relationship. Warnings: yaoi, ratings may change to M later on.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's note: Hey everyone! I finally worked up the nerve to post my very first story! I would love some constructive criticism on my writing and for you guys to let me know what you think! Just something to note: I have no beta so there may be some typos. PLEASE let me know if you see a typo because I am aware of how irritating it is to be reading a great story and the author screws up your and you're. So there's that. Let me know if the pacing is good and what not!**

**Warnings: BOY LOVE, may change to M later on! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Kyo Kara Moah… if I did it would just turn into a Wolfram/Yuuri smut fest and no one would watch it. **

* * *

Yuuri sat at his desk and resisted the urge to slam his head repeatedly against the top of it. Why did paperwork exist, honestly? You would think that being king and all, you would have people to pass the burden of signing land grants and expected food harvest reports. Yuuri sighed dramatically and resisted the urge to flail about in boredom, or hurl himself out the two story window of his office.

He eyed the thick stack of papers warily and then eyed his chief of state. He then planned out a scenario where the papers suddenly, and quite mysteriously, rip into shreds. As the noble demon king who was the epitome of justice, he could claim innocence and receive condolences from his advisors who would believe him and- nope that would never happen. Yuuri moaned and crumpled into his seat. Why was the world so cruel?

Gwendal sat at the table in the center of the study and watched out of the corner of his eye for the king to make his daily escape for his precious freedom. His blood vessel in his forehead pulsed in annoyance at the procrastination that his king was displaying.

_Honestly, why did I have to pick the world's longest signature? My poor hand…_

Yuuri leaned back in his seat and rubbed a hand against the knots in the back of his neck. He kept trying to resist looking over his shoulder for the blonde who was always supposed to be by his side. Wolfram was on border patrol for a week, which always caused Yuuri to feel intense pangs of worry and loneliness.

After their wedding two years ago in the spring, Yuuri and Wolfram were inseparable and barely spent an entire day apart from each other at any given time. Mostly that was Wolfram's fault, claiming that Yuuri was a big cheating wimp and that it was his duty as the king's consort to watch for any 'dubious behavior'.

Yuuri grinned at the memories of their extended honeymoon period. After sixteen years of being almost completely asexual his hormones definitely made up for his lack of sex life with his beautiful blonde husband. Wolfram would blush and pretend to be upset when Yuuri dragged him into dark corridors or fondled him under the table during dull parties. It was hard to believe that he had once been so adamant against two guys falling in love. He shook his head ruefully as he remembered his speeches and excuses that he would spout after Wolfram's jealous fits.

He really was a hypocrite. To be fair, it wasn't his fault that Wolfram stuck to his side at all hours of the day and night and Yuuri adapted to his presence so much that he felt strange whenever he was gone. It was like missing a limb, only he would never tell the arrogant blonde that. Wolfram already gave himself airs that he finally wore down the demon king's 'human' beliefs and persuaded Yuuri to give their relationship a chance.

Yuuri felt the ache of loneliness and gave a fleeting glance towards the door, praying for a distraction.

_Maybe if I… _

"Don't even think about it." Gwendel barked gruffly without looking up from his paperwork.

Yuuri jumped in his seat and let out a nervous, completely innocent, laugh.

"What? I wasn't thinking anything-"

"Your majesty!" Gunter's voice was laced with desperation and fear. The door to the study was flung open and Gunter raced into the room, sweat dripping down his forehead.

"What is it Gunter?" Yuuri demanded as he rose from his seat and braced himself for the worst. Gwendel took a defensive stance in front of the king and placed his hand on his sword belt.

"Has there been an attack?" Gwendel demanded as Gunter leaned over to catch his breath from the run.

"Sire," Gunter raised his head and met Yuuri's eyes solemnly. Yuuri's heart began to race in fear as a thousand scenarios danced in his head. Gunter never looked at him like that, as though the world was breaking apart and he was trying to form the words to gently inform his beloved king.

"Your highness, I am so very sorry, but Wolfram's patrol-" Yuuri suddenly felt as though he couldn't get enough air into his lungs, his heartbeat drummed in his ears, and his head became dizzy.

_No, No, No, No. God if you exist please not him. Take anything you want from me just not him. I'll do anything, say anything, be a better person whatever you want. Just let me have Wolfram…_

Gunter's gentle voice broke through his frantic prayers.

"Wolfram is critically injured and they are bringing him to the castle immediately. Gisela is ready to perform her healing abilities."

Yuuri let out a gasp of relief, _he's not dead_, and palmed his chest to try to ease the feeling of his heart attempting to burst from his chest.

"But he's alive right? I need to go and see him-"

Yuuri strode to the door and flung it open to get to Wolfram, already mapping out the quickest route to the medical chambers of the castle.

"Wait a minute your majesty-" Gunter requested quickly but stopped as his king turned his head and glared at him for the interruption.

Gwendel sighed and regained his composure. "Yuuri, King Saralegui is on his way today from Small Shimeron, I know you want to run to Wolfram and see that he is alright but you have a duty as our king to handle this. Gisela will do all that she can to help Wolfram, you will only get in her way."

Yuuri flinched and stared at his trusted advisor with betrayal. "No offense Gwendel but my husband almost dying take priority over a diplomatic meeting." He snapped, not quite hiding the uncharacteristic snarl out of his voice. "In fact since he's your little brother and all, I'm surprised that you even feel the need to argue with me."

"You can check on him after you secure good relations with Small Shimeron! Our shaky diplomatic agreement cannot afford the demon king slighting a monarch by not bothering to show up to greet them!"

"That's not fair! Anyone would be understanding-"

Gwendel's fist slammed down onto the oak surface of the table. "Damnit Yuuri! Do you honestly think I don't want to check on Wolfram as much as you do? But we both have an obligation to this country, something that Wolfram understands as a soldier!" Behind Gwendel's tough exterior, Yuuri could see fractures of concern and worry for his baby brother. "However you are forgetting that your husband's patrol was attacked, which means this could be an attack from Small Shimeron or anyone else for that matter!"

_So help anyone if they think to take him away from me_, the inner demon king roared. _I'll kill Saralegui myself, parade his body on a stick throughout the kingdom and demonstrate to everyone what happens when they mess with my mate. _

Yuuri frantically tried to stifle his inner call for justice and fought to regain control of his own mind. _Please don't, we don't know if he did this. _His power rose to the surface of his skin, and he could tell his soul was trying to recede in place of the demon king. He focused on centering himself and took slow deep breaths. _It isn't justice if we aren't rational. _It wasn't easy, all his emotions were swirling in panic in fear for Wolfram's life and the pure anger that arose when anyone dared to mess with his people, much less Wolfram.

Gwendel's voice snapped through his inner turmoil. "Don't let his injuries be in vain. Wolfram knew what he was doing, time for you to do your part."

He scrubbed his fingers through his hair in an effort to diffuse the tension in his body. "Fine. I'll greet Sara, but after that I'm checking on Wolfram and I'm not leaving his side until he wakes up!" Yuuri let his inner demon king power bleed into his voice and the room rang with finality.

Gunter stepped forward in front of the king and attempted a comforting smile. The face that normally was alight with excitement and passion to aide the young king was serious and morose. It was hard to remember that Gunter was once a powerful swordsman and more than capable of killing enemies of the demon kingdom, but right now, Yuuri couldn't forget the look of foreboding in those lavender eyes.

"Let's greet our guest shall we?" Gunter asked lightly.

* * *

The carriage rolled up the cobblestone entrance to Covenant Castle. The air outside was darkening as the sun set and the bad omen birds took to the air with their call. The carriage containing their supposed ally crawled up the trail and through the gates. The exterior was a sleek dark brown and covered in gold embellishes that could probably pay for a village's food for a year. Yuuri paced back and forth in front of Gunter and Gwendel. Conrad was by Wolfram's side as Gisela performed emergency procedures to save the consort's life.

Guards were strategically placed throughout the castle courtyard on Gwendel's orders and the atmosphere was crackling with tension. The carriage rolled to a stop and Yuuri forced himself to stand still and give a fake smile to his friend. Even after all this time, Yuuri didn't want to believe that Sara was behind the attack on Wolfram, but his fear for Wolf's life was causing him to be unnaturally suspicious of everyone. A little voice nagged at the back of Yuuri's mind that Sara had already betrayed him once. He frowned worriedly, _No Sara is my friend. He wouldn't attack Wolfram. He wouldn't. _

Endless moments passed as the men were forced to wait for the king of Small Shimeron to deign to lower himself from the vehicle. Finally, after Yuuri wanted to scream in frustration and no doubt be chastised by Gwendel, Sara stepped delicately down onto the ground. The foreign king raised his head to look into Yuuri's eyes behind his blue spectacles and lifted his lips into a gentle smile.

"Hello, Yuuri. It's been a long time hasn't it?"


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's note: Alright guys! Since I was on a roll, I decided to post chapter two as well. Once again please let me know what you think or if you see any errors in the story. I originally ****didn't plan on this story heading in this direction but it turns out that my mind decided to anyway. Please tell me if anything is confusing or if there isn't enough romance later on in the story. I know how irritating it is to read a story that is too overshadowed by events happening. More explanations for the plot are in the next chapter:)**

* * *

Yuuri gazed at the injured demon on the bed. His normally golden complexion was now pale and waxen, and wrapped on his chest and shoulder were white stripes of bandage stained red with blood. Wolfram's breathing was shallow and his face grimaced slightly with every breath that he took. Gisela was nearby, fussing around him and checking his vital signs.

"Are you sure he'll be okay?" Yuuri's asked in a small voice. This wasn't like the blonde, normally he would be ordering everyone around to stop coddling him and demanding to get back out there with his troops, not laying here passively. His consort didn't do 'passive'.

Gisela stopped fluffing the pillows by her patient's head and turned her gentle gaze to Yuuri's. "Your Majesty, Lord Wolfram is very strong, and luckily the sword missed his heart. He is only resting right now, but I have no doubt he will be awake and complaining in a couple of hours." Gisela smiled down at the soldier and checked his pulse. "He wouldn't let anything take him away from you, Highness. Not even death."

Perspiration glistened on Gisela's forehead and her hands shook slightly on Wolfram's skin. As Yuuri focused more on the healer he noticed she looked slightly green with dark circles under her eyes. "Gisela, I appreciate everything you're doing for Wolfram, but please make sure you don't overspend yourself. I would hate to see you get sick." Gisela flushed gratefully under the young king's caring gaze.

"Why thank you for your concern, Your Majesty, but I will be alright. Lord Wolfram had extensive injuries and I had to perform high level healing magic on him. I will still have considerable power for a good while."

"Good I'm glad. Yuuri smile faded quickly when Gisela quietly left the room and shut the door behind her. He was left to his own worries and returned his attention to Wolfram. This situation was bringing him flashbacks of another time, when Wolfram's body was frozen without his heart and Yuuri didn't know if he was going to be strong enough to save his best friend. Yuuri's hands shook slightly.

"This is why I wanted you to stop being a soldier, you know?" Yuuri studied the injured boy's face carefully for signs of movement. "But I wouldn't ask that of you. Being a soldier is part of who you are and you wouldn't be happy being my consort all day, standing behind me watching me sign paperwork and sit in boring meetings."

Yuuri fidgeted in his chair. All he wanted was for his partner to wake up and tell him he was being a total wimp. "I still don't know who did this to you. I really hope it's not Sara, Wolf. I mean he seems like he's changed and I want to trust him. That probably makes me an idiot, huh? But I want to believe he's a good person so bad. I asked him if he knew anything about the attack, but he claimed that he knew nothing about it." There was silence as Yuuri let his voice trail off uncertainly.

"Please Wolfram, wake up. What if I told you that I was cheating on you with-"

"I KNEW IT." Wolframs body flung up suddenly into a sitting position, his emerald eyes glowed with rage. "You cheating wimp! This is what I get for-" Wolfram started coughing and grabbing his chest in pain. Yuuri flinched and jumped in his seat. "Wolfram! Stay still, ok? I'll call for Gisela!"

Yuuri raced to the door and yelled out into the hallway, his heart beating with joy and adrenaline. "Gisela! Wolfram's awake! Hurry!" The healer suddenly darted down the corridor, carrying bundles of bandages and other herbs. "Move Yuuri!" she snapped in her sergeant voice and Yuuri scrambled to get out of the doorway. He followed close on her heels as she stopped at Wolfram's side and began pouring her power into Wolfram's injury.

Yuuri leaned around Gisela's soldier to see and froze when he met Wolfram's infuriated glare. Yuuri tilted his body away as he laughed nervously, shielding himself behind Gisela in case Wolf wanted to set him on fire.

_Oh come on! He had to wake up as I was joking about cheating on him! Not that I'm not glad he's awake but SERIOUSLY. The Great One obviously wants me to pay for something. Totally unfair. _

Lost in his own ranting of injustice in the world, he missed the moment Gisela's healing light stopped flooding the room and Gisela's firm voice brought him back to the present. "Alright Your Majesty," she declared as she lightly pushing Wolfram back onto the pillows,"not to worry, Lord Wolfram just reopened his wounds when he moved too quickly." Wolfram gave out a load groan in irritation and pain. "Sure, Gisela, blame the invalid. Some healer you are." She pointedly ignored her recalcitrant patient.

Gisela began unwrapping the blond's bandages and set out some herbs to prepare to apply them to the wound. "Your Highness, you must watch His Excellency carefully now. He's going to want to ignore my orders and simply go about his day without taking proper precautions." She stopped suddenly and sent the latter a ferocious death glare that had Wolfram attempting to escape by sinking through the bed to the floor. "It would be _very _bad for him if he did that." She snapped threateningly.

Yuuri tried letting out a laugh to diffuse the tension, and save his Consort from the suddenly sinister healer. "Oh I'm sure Wolf will listen to orders, he wouldn't be that stupid." Gisela nodded and went back to wrapping the new gauze around the soldier's shoulder.

Wolfram snorted and rolled his eyes before focusing them back on the demon king. "Isn't there something important you should be doing, wimp? Like running a kingdom by any chance?" He asked pointedly and raised a perfectly groomed eyebrow. Yuuri shook his head in disbelief, only Wolfram can pull off almost dying without a blonde hair out of place.

Yuuri walked around the other side of the bed and reached out to grab his hand. "I'm so glad you're okay, Wolf. You have no idea how worried I was." He said softly and gazed sincerely into the soldier's stare. The expressive eyes widened before the smile that Yuuri adored broke across his face. Yuuri subconsciously began leaning forward into his husband's personal space, only realizing it when the blond's warm breath caressed his face. His eyes slid down to Wolf's full lips and-

Gisela let out an uncomfortable cough, hiding her smile behind her fist. "King Yuuri, Wolfram needs to be resting in bed for a couple of days so it'll be up to you to make sure he follows orders." Yuuri hastily flinched back from Wolfram and blushed a deep red. Wolfram gave an amused laugh at his spouse's embarrassment and Gisela smiled at the two of them before gathering her items and promising to come back to check on her patient in a couple hours.

Yuuri sat down in a chair beside the bed and stared at Wolfram with a huge grin.

"...Why are you looking at me like that?" Wolfram demanded as he twisted the bed sheet between his hands.

"I'm just so happy that you're awake, Wolf. You don't even know how terrified I was." Yuuri grabbed a pale slender hand and held onto it tightly. He looked down at their entwined hands for a moment before glancing back up at the blonde. "No more patrols for a while, okay Wolf?" Yuuri cajoled hesitantly.

Wolfram studied Yuuri's face for a minute in concern before nodding. "Well of course not, I don't want to get on Gisela's bad side by going against orders." Wolfram sat up slowly, wincing as he did it.

"Wolf! Hold still a second will you?" Yuuri gently grabbed him around the shoulders to hold him upright before stuffing a pillow against his lower spine. Wolfram's hand reached out and touched Yuuri's face before he could pull away. The demon king started in surprise and glanced over to meet a loving green gaze. Endless moments passed in silence as the king reassured himself that his consort was here, safe and alive. Wolfram simply glowed with contentment even though his chest still rattled in pain with every breath.

"What happened out there?" Yuuri murmured suddenly. "It was supposed to be a simple border patrol."

The mood broke and Wolfram narrowed his eyes in remembered rage at the squirmish. "It was! I was leading my squad along the western perimeter, everything was going fine. We passed through Agrona and we were going to stop for the night-"

"Agrona?" Yuuri interrupted. Wolfram waved his hand loftily. "Oh for the love of- it's a town about fifteen miles from here, you really need to start paying attention to Gunter's geography lessons."

"I do pay attention!"

"Do not wimp!" Wolfram clapped his hand suddenly over Yuuri's mouth to stop the blossoming argument. He heaved a put-upon sigh and continued, "As I was saying. The reason we were going to stop there is because they are known for their mining industry for black crystal. A rarity among demon kind because they are known to expand the powers of the demon who wields it."

"Wait a second! How come I didn't know about these crystals? Why isn't everyone in the kingdom carrying these around if they are so useful?" Yuuri demanded in confusion. "Those stones would be kinda handy in the situations we get ourselves into."

"Because Yuuri, the crystals are a double-edge sword. While they do increase your powers greatly with each use, they also bring you closer to losing your powers forever. In other words, they suck out the life force of the demon who uses them by slowly destroying their power. As we all know, once a demon loses the ability to create magic they die." Wolfram explained. "It's absolutely disgusting! Only insecure losers would ever even consider the undignifying act of applying black crystals to their bodies, definitely not people fit to call themselves an honorable citizen of the Great Demon Kingdom."

Yuuri processed this new information and tried to remember if he tuned Gunter out in the lesson about black crystals, or if it had never been taught to him in the first place.

"The demons who wield them become addicted to the stone after the first use and turn into mindless slaves who will do anything to experience the rush of power again." Wolfram's voice raised in volume. "Those who use them are nothing more than pathetic husks of people! Honestly, if they had any dignity at all they would end their lives right then and there after the first exposure!"

"Why are black crystals even allowed to be sold in the first place then? Why not send in some troops and just destroy the entire industry?"

Wolfram shook his head in response his eyelids lowering thoughtfully. "A few kings before you have tried believe me. Except shutting down the selling of an item doesn't mean it's the end of the problem. All it does is allow for the good to be priced significantly higher and get into the wrong hands."

Yuuri's eyebrows raised as he finally caught on. "You're talking about the black market."

"Exactly. So now the Great Demon Kingdom watches over the production and selling of the black crystals, that way we can log who buys them and make sure warnings are given about the stones deadly side effects. We also make sure they don't get sold to enemies." Wolfram's tone became slurred at the end his eyes struggling to open after each blink. Gisela's pain relief remedies must be taking effect.

"So what happened to your patrol, Wolf?" Yuuri prodded gently, reaching out a hand to brush his husband's bangs back from his forehead. "Mmm." Wolf made a tired, happy sound in the back of his throat as his hair was stroked. He tilted his head forward to follow Yuuri's hand to prolong the contact and then shifted to kiss his palm.

"Honestly, I have no idea. One of our designated stops for our patrol is Agrona but it isn't under my squad's jurisdiction to regulate. It falls under Lady von Rochefort's command and she carefully watches the black crystal sales."

Yuuri thought about that for a second. "Wait! Is Lady von Rochefort one of the Ten Aristocrats?"

Wolfram nodded in response. "I'm impressed you remember anything from the council meetings, you wimp."

"Don't call me a wimp! And I'd like to see you concentrate while trying not to vomit in that chair!"

Wolfram's eyes suddenly slid closed and his breathing deepened as he fell into much needed rest. Yuuri rose to his feet and grinned at the peaceful expression on his face.

_He never did tell me what happened on his patrol. Oh well, it's so like Wolf to fall asleep in the middle of a conversation. _

Yuuri pulled up the sheet to cover more of Wolfram's chest. He leaned over and whispered in the blonde's ear, "Thank you for coming back to me. I love you."


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's note: Yay another chapter! This one is a little longer than the others so there's that. Once again please review if you have any complaints. This chapter has Sara in it, for any Sara fans out there! :) Personally I didn't like him that much because he took Yuuri's attention away from Wolfram in season three.. but that's just my opinion! **

**Warning: Slightly implied yaoi ****relationship. Though I think that's what we want to read.. **

* * *

"Oh come on, Conrad. You can do better than that!" Yuuri playfully scolded.

It was a perfect day in the Great Demon Kingdom, the sun was shining and a light breeze flowed through the courtyard where the demon king was playing catch with his long time friend and protector. Conrad let out a self-deprecating laugh as Yuuri was forced once again to jog after a wayward ball.

"I'm sorry, Your Majesty." Conrad called out to the back of Yuuri's head as the double black leaned down to pluck the ball from the bushes.

Yuuri immediately yelled back, "How many times do I have to tell you to call me Yuuri?" _I swear he calls me that on purpose._

He spun around, ball in hand and threw it back to Conrad as hard as he could. He walked back to his original place in the grass and the two resumed passing the ball back and forth.

Yuuri wondered if now would be the time to ask Conrad about the black crystals. It had taken him forever to dodge Sara after stepping out of Wolfram's room when the blonde had finally fallen asleep, and he hadn't gotten any time alone with Conrad to discuss what went wrong with Wolfram's patrol. He glanced around the clearing and studied the guards in place at every corner, trying their best to imitate statues. Boneys crouched like gargoyle's on the castle rooftops and their black sockets seemed to bore holes into the king's soul.

"Something wrong, Yuuri?" Conrad asked gently. Yuuri was drawn out of the creepy stare down and realized that he had been holding the baseball frozen in his glove. Yuuri tried to smile to cover up his unease.

"Oh it's nothing. It's just there's a lot of eyes watching, huh?" He lobbed the ball back at Conrad. "I understand the heightened security around Wolfram's room, but I don't see why I have to have so many guards. I think I'm pretty safe in the middle of my own castle! And besides you're here!" Yuuri's voice became a whine halfway through his speech.

Conrad gave an enigmatic smile and tossed the ball. "Yuuri, there was definitely a reason Wolfram was targeted. We aren't completely sure why at this point, but it's easy to assume that somebody wanted to hurt him to send a message to you. It would not be the first time in our history that the Royal Consort was targeted as a power play against the demon king."

_Just let them try_, the inner demon king growled at the thought.

Conrad's eyes widened in alarm as a blue sheen of power skirted along the surface of Yuuri's skin. He watched in awe as black eyes flashed and narrowed into snake pupils. The air around them started to crackle with suppressed energy and the hair on Conrad's arms began to stand on end. Then as quickly as the transformation started, it ended as Yuuri shook his head in a daze and gained control of his inner self once again.

"Yuuri?" Conrad's voice drifted to him in concern as Yuuri once again stifled the rush of demonic power and rage. Yuuri smiled wearily at Conrad and sighed at the level of worry in the caring brown eyes.

"The Demon King is absolutely murderous about the attack on Wolf." Yuuri stared down into his gloved hand. "He loves him as much as I do, you know?" A comforting hand came down on the double black's shoulder and he tore his away to gaze into the warm eyes of his godfather.

"Of course, the Demon King is _you_, Yuuri. I'm sorry I was so blunt about what happened, I was out of line. Forgive me?"

Yuuri's eyes widened in distress and quickly exclaimed, "Oh no Conrad, you should know that you can say anything to me! It's definitely not your fault for being honest and that my other half wants to seek out and murder the monster who would do this to Wolfram." Yuuri gave a nervous chuckle when he realized he said too much. However, a glance a Conrad's expression showed that the half demon wasn't afraid of him and even looked understanding of the dark thoughts in Yuuri's mind.

Yuuri gave a quick scan of the placement of the guards again. Was it just his imagination or did some of them look like they've neared close enough to listen in?

Taking a step closer to Conrad, Yuuri asked in a low voice. "Listen Conrad, I need you to tell me what happened to Wolfram's patrol. I don't want to bother Wolfram because he needs his sleep but I have to know."

The brown haired man nodded. "Very well. I first heard Wolfram's patrol had been attacked after a messenger bird had been sent. The message had specifically been addressed to me, which I found to be slightly odd but I didn't hesitate to immediately ride out with five of my men to assist Wolfram. Upon arriving, Wolfram was holding his chest in pain but he was still conscious and ordering his men to attack the intruders."

Conrad paused and narrowed his eyes. "There were at least eight attackers with extremely powerful magic skills. That shouldn't have mattered, Wolfram magic far exceeds anyone in the kingdom apart from you, Sire. But for some reason, the demons were able to severely wound him and tear apart Wolfram's elite guard."

Yuuri thought this over for a minute. "That doesn't make any sense! Why would demons attack their own Royal Consort? There's no reason to! Just when the world is finally at peace, too!" Yuuri took a deep breath to stabilize his emotions.

"Is there anything else I should know about the demons? Anything that could help us figure out what's going on?"

Conrad made a deliberating noise in the back of his throat. "Well there was one thing. When I arrived the attackers just turned around and fled. However, one of the demons got between me Wolfram and pulled a jeweled, red and black knife on Wolfram. He turned and hissed at me, 'Praise the Phoenix' before leaving Wolf collapsed on the ground."

Yuuri's hands tightened into fist at the thought of Wolfram almost fighting to the death.

_How close I was to losing him._

"Conrad, I need you to research everything you can about this phoenix guy. Send Yozak after them, but tell him to be extremely careful." Conrad gave a slight bow to his king. "As you wish."

"Well, well what's going on here?" Yuuri stiffened as the deceptively soft voice drifted from behind him. Conrad straightened and gave his unreadable smile at the intruder. "Hello, Your Majesty. How are you today?"

Yuuri spun around and stared at King Saralegui in surprise. How much did he hear? It seems like even Conrad didn't notice him approaching.

Sara tilted his head at Yuuri before nodding to Conrad. "Very well, thank you. Although I am slightly upset that I haven't gotten to be able to spend time with you, Yuuri. Have you been avoiding me?"

Yuuri laughed uncomfortably and scratched the back of his head. "Oh no, Sara! It's just a lot of things have been going on… and speaking of that I really need to see if Wolf is awake!"

Sara blinked his eyes in hurt and stepped closer to the double black. "Yuuri, I thought you said you wanted us to be friends. I also thought that diplomacy was your number one priority in your agenda as king. After all," Sara paused delicately before smiling, "it would be a shame if peace was unable to be kept between our nation, wouldn't it?"

Yuuri sensed Conrad stiffen behind him and a couple of seconds later Yuuri caught on. "Sara...are you threatening me?" He felt a wave of hurt at the thought that after everything they've been through, the foreign king still had his own devious motives to being his friend.

Sara let out a chilling laugh that raised the hairs along Yuuri's arms. "Of course not, my dear Yuuri. I would never dream of threatening you. I'm merely pointing out to one monarch to another that it's not wise to barricade yourself in with your Consort- no matter how cute he may be."

Yuuri flinched at the mention of Wolfram and the slight jealousy that simmered behind the blue glasses. He was starting to wonder if maybe Wolfram's jealous rants about Sara having interest in him were not unfounded after all.

Sara simpered and waved his hand. "Ah well. It's only understandable to care for an injured spouse."

Conrad stepped forward until he was partly in front of the double black. "If you don't mind my asking, King Sara, how did you know that Wolfram was injured? That information was strictly confidential." Conrad's eyes were hard and his hand rested on his sword belt.

Belias melted from the shadows and stalked up to stand directly behind the Small Shimeron King.

Sara pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose until they glinted in the sun. "Was it? I had no idea. I sincerely apologize if I have over stepped myself, Yuuri. I was only expressing my condolences." He gave a graceful half-bow to Yuuri.

Yuuri's jaw tightened and he stared hard at the other king. "A couple of years ago, Sara, I was naive and didn't understand that people could lie about wanting to be friends and secretly be plotting against me. I saw the best in everyone and that's something that I want to always try to do."

The Demon King took a few steps forward until the two monarchs were nose to nose. "However, I just had to hold my husband's hand yesterday and watch as he struggled to breath through the pain. I had to hear that I was so incredibly close to losing him while he screamed as his wounds were sealed up." Yuuri allowed his power to wrap around him and narrowed his eyes with slitted pupils.

"I am not in the best of moods, Sara. I have no time for pettiness. My priority is Wolfram, and giving justice to the enemies that dared lay a hand on him. So if that's you, you better run right back to Small Shimeron, gather your troops, and hope to whatever god you believe in that I don't find you." Yuuri allowed the demon king magic to leave him and was slightly mortified by his vengeful spirit, but not enough to take back his words.

The normally carefully blank face of the blonde was now covered in shock. Sara's mouth gaped and he took a step back, fear breaking through his mask for a few seconds before he squelched it. "But of course Yuuri, I would never dare to harm Wolfram!" Sara gave a forced laugh. "What kind of man do you take me for?"

Yuuri allowed himself to relax and gave a small smile. "I'm glad, Sara. Please be patient with me? I have a lot on my plate right now but you're right, peace is extremely important to me."

Sara nodded quickly and smiled back, relieved that whatever force had taken over Yuuri was gone. He gestured to Belias and bade a quick farewell before walking away.

He waited until he and Belias were a good distance away from the demon king and any surrounding guards before murmuring, "Belias, I want you to find out what's going on in this castle."

"Someone is plotting something. I find it incredibly rude that they didn't invite me." The Small Shimeron king's glasses shone in the midday sun.

* * *

"Wolf, are you sure you don't want to lie in bed? That doesn't look very comfortable." Yuuri complained worriedly, as he held himself back from fussing over the demon.

"Yuuri, I've been cooped up for three days in that damn bed. I'm sick of it! I'm a soldier and one of the most powerful magic users in the world! I can go where I please. Besides, Gisela said it was okay as long as I was resting." Wolfram declared from his relaxed position on his back.

Yuuri was once again in his office, slumped at his desk buried under mountains of paper work that had accumulated while Yuuri stayed by Wolfram's side constantly. He sighed as he shook out another cramp in his hand. He would've liked to think that somebody would take pity on their king and take care of his duties while he dealt with his injured and highly cranky consort.

Wolfram was lounging on a couch that was pushed against the wall to Yuuri's left. The blonde had insisted that he went wherever Yuuri went, stating that it wasn't safe and that the wimpy king needed his protection. Yuuri had kindly pointed out that there wasn't much that Wolfram could do besides bleed to death. The conversation had rapidly escalated into another infamous royal argument that the rest of the staff in the castle ignored as usual.

"Hey wimp, you've been staring at the page for a while."

"Don't call me a wimp!"

Wolfram turned his head into the pillow to hide his smile. Yuuri was just too fun to tease. He loved it when Yuuri's eyes would flash in annoyance and his cheeks blushed a deep red whenever Wolfram could rile him up. Which considering the double black's well known gentle temperament- was quite often.

Wolfram studied the young man as he signed his signature before picking up another paper. He felt a pang in his chest at the obvious tension in Yuuri's shoulders and the stress lines in his face. Wolfram knew it was inadvertently his fault that his normally cheerful spouse was this somber and he hated it.

It was his job to make Yuuri's life easier, to love him no matter what, and to encourage (okay push) Yuuri to be a better king, not to make his life harder.

He absently rubbed his shoulder that continued to throb.

"Does it hurt, Wolf? Maybe we should call for Gisela.." Yuuri called out worriedly. He locked gazes with the worried double black and fought a huff of annoyance.

"No way. It just stings a little that's all. Besides if you get Gisela she might make me go back into that stuffy room, and I'd much rather be in here with you." He saw how Yuuri's eyes lit up with relief and it made him forget the wound in his chest.

"Wolfram?"

"What is it?"

"Nothing. I'm just glad you're here." Yuuri gave a wide grin, enjoying the blush that spread across Wolfram's face.

"How many times are you going to say that?" Wolfram snapped, pretending to be irritated. Yuuri merely ignored him and scrunched up his forehead in concentration.

Wolfram found himself wishing that he wasn't forced to lay down at all times, it would be so much more enjoyable to kiss the frustration off his beautiful wimp.

"You know Wolf, in my world there's this thing called a wheelchair, it's for people who are injured. I think I can go see my family and pick one up for you." Yuuri stared at the blonde speculatively. "That way we can move you around easier. I know how much you hate being carried."

"It's fine. A simple cane would do well enough to assist me." Wolfram muttered.

"If I get the wheelchair then you're going to use it. Don't make me make that an order." Yuuri warned.

Wolfram rolled his eyes dramatically before letting himself stare at the ceiling. "I'm going to be moving back into the royal chambers tonight."

"Really? That's great news!" Yuuri shifted in excitement. This meant Wolf was getting better! He hated it even more than Wolfram that the energetic blonde was forcibly incapacitated.

Wolfram gave an answering grin, his excitement for returning to their room was much less innocent than Yuuri's. After all, he was sure that as long as he stayed in bed as ordered, he didn't necessarily need to be _resting._

_"_You almost done with your paperwork, wimp?"

"DON'T CALL ME A WIMP!"


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's note: This chapter is dedicated to Sawyer Fan. Honestly without you this probably would never have been posted, so thanks! Also the intruder in this chapter is supposed to be referred to as an "it" to not give away the gender. As always please let me know about typos/confusion. Sorry this chapter has taken ****sooo long, it was hard to write. But it's longer at least!**

**Warning: I think damn is written like three times.. so cursing? Also developed malexmale relationship, and drug use.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own KKM sadly.**

* * *

The boy and girl clad in rags raced barefoot through the caves. Their breaths echoed loudly in the darkness as they felt along the walls, attempting to navigate the labyrinth by touch. The air, freezing away from the surface of the world, made the boy wrap his arm protectively around the young girl tighter as she shivered.

_So close, just so close to freedom. _

As they traveled farther through twists and turns they kept track of the time, for they had no precious seconds to waste. The girl, frantic in her need to reach their destination, almost fell down a steep abyss when the floor gave way under her feet.

"Careful, Mira!" The boy hissed and grabbed her arm to pull her away from danger. He cautiously guided them away from the steep ledge and found the tiny entrance way to the main cavern. The two children crawled into the entrance way and slunk into the claustrophobic area, using their hands to make sure the floor above them continued.

Finally, the boy saw the orange light of a lantern up ahead, and he sighed with relief that they weren't too late. He winced when he heard his sister's shallow pants behind him and hated that he was forced to push her this hard when she was so sick. The tunnel around them suddenly widened and the children came out into a huge underground cavern.

Lanterns were lit in intervals along the oval walls. The roof of the cave was so high above their heads that the light didn't illuminate it far enough, giving the impression of impossible darkness pressing down on their heads. Tunnel entrances gaped menacingly from all location around the cavern, and the boy realized how lucky they were to make it here from the impossible maze. In the center was a huge ceremonial sun dial etched into the stone floor. The swirling lines of the dial had fire running along them, drawing the children's eyes to the decoration. The boy mused that the fire was lit by oil that was poured into the floor, and not as impressive as it would be if it were lit by magic alone.

The children had their arms wrapped around each other while their hearts beat with the fear that a monster would jump out at any minute.

_Damnit. Where is he? He said he'd be here!_

The boy looked worriedly down at his younger sister. Her face was pale and covered in a light sheen of sweat. Her body was shaking and she looked like she could barely keep her eyes open.

"Brother, we made it right?" She whispered. "Everything's going to be fine now like you said?"

The boy nodded and clutched her tighter, unable to meet her gentle gaze.

A cloaked figure suddenly appeared in the center of the flames causing the children to flinch. The face was hidden by the hood and the robe was engraved with a dragon, that seemed to writhe in the flickers of the fire.

"Did you complete your assignment?" The voice rasped. The boy stepped in front his little sister bravely. "We did. We went to the Demon Kingdom and completed what you asked."

The obscure figure was silent. "Well then, what are you waiting for boy? Give me the full report."

Taking a deep breath, to tamp down on his anger the boy gritted his teeth and replied, "My sister and I got into the castle of the Great Demon Kingdom. Nobody has any idea who we are or suspects us. Your liaison inside found a way to contact us, and slipped a note that Lord von Bielefeld is currently healing. The Demon King hasn't left his side. Also, they are suspecting that it has something to do with the black crystals. Your contact stated that the Prince Consort was telling the Demon King all about Agrona."

The man hummed in the back of his throat. "I see. And did my contact say anything about the infiltration status?"

"Yeah, apparently there are some logistics to work out. The contact said to tell you that it's not wise to send in troops. You need to make the Demon King weaker or it's not going to work because he has been accessing his power more frequently and alarmingly than ever." The boy recited, having read that damn note until the words pounded into his skull.

The fire rose slightly higher and the heat blasted in the children's faces. "Well then, I was hoping that they would manage to be farther along in the plan than this. I may need to stir things up. Wouldn't want things to become too dull, do we?" The man drawled.

Fed up, the boy's fist tightened and he glared at the man in disgust. This had nothing to do with his family and he couldn't care less about an insane man's plans. "Alright, we did everything you asked. Now give my sister her medicine." The boy demanded.

The figure tilted his head to the side and asked, "What medicine?"

"Don't lie!" He shouted in hatred. "You promised you would make her better! You said that if we did this job, you would give her what she needs." His sister whimpered in pain, and clutched at her throat.

"Ah, now I understand." The man whispered in condescension. He glided out of the ring of fire and stopped in front of the two children. Reaching into his long sleeve he pulled out a small pouch. He quickly pulled open the drawstring tie and dumped the contents on the ground by their feet.

The young girl immediately scrambled forward in a frenzy and started gulping down the black shards on the cave floor, her hands feeling out every last crumb. Fighting back a gag of revulsion the boy bent down and helped her gather the crystals.

The man let out a hair-raising laugh and tilted his head back, hands spread out to the sides. "There you go, my little worms. There you go. All hail the Phoenix." He kicked the side of the boy on all fours creating a satisfying yelp of pain and crunch of bones.

The boy seethed up at the towering 'god' and spat, "All hail the Phoenix."

The royal family of the Great Demon Kingdom was seated around a round table having a quiet breakfast. Sunlight streamed into the room from the floor to ceiling windows that overlooked the front lawn of the castle.

Greta was bursting with happiness at seeing her beloved Papa Wolf looking so healthy. She had constantly worried for him after hearing of the attack, but had been asked to stay away while the injury was healed just enough for it to not be gruesome. He was looking so much better than when she last saw him, asleep in bed with Yuuri curled carefully around him. She hadn't stayed long, not wanting to disrupt the fleeting peace that they had found for a moment. She stole another glance at Wolfram, her attention not completely on Yuuri's funny story of his time spent procuring a wheelchair for Wolfram on his other world.

The Prince Consort was slightly slouched from his usual elegant posture and a hand was casually held to his injury. While his golden face was slightly grimaced from pain, he appeared very stable and strong. She glanced back to her other father, who appeared to be consumed with positive energy, no doubt brought on by the relief of having the three of them together again.

Greta's hands trembled on her fork as she delicately brought her food to her mouth. She was consumed with butterflies and her nerves were finally getting the best of her.

_Come on, don't be a coward. You promised yourself you would tell them as soon as Papa Wolf was better._

She took a deep breath, squeezed her eyes shut and told them.

"You WHAT?" Yuuri yelled as he choked on the food in his mouth. Her other father's glare became more pronounced but he couldn't say anything because he had to pound his fist on Yuuri's back to open his airways.

Greta took another calming breath, _I knew they would react like this_, and repeated herself. "Fathers, I want to be allowed to court a boy." She watched in dismay as Wolfram and Yuuri shared a look of shock and protective anger.

"But you can't date boys, Greta! You're aren't any where near old enough and besides.. you're still daddy's baby girl!" Yuuri wailed.

Greta fought off a wince that came with the feeling that she had disappointed her father. She straightened her shoulders and met his black eyes as calmly as she could.

_I am fourteen years old, for the Great One's sake, I can be allowed to like a boy. _She reminded herself sternly. _Don't back down now. _

Wolframs hand tightened on his knife and Greta could swear flames were reflecting in those piercing emerald eyes. However, Wolfram seemed to keep his anger in check for once as Yuuri ranted about how boys were evil and Greta should never _ever _date them.

"Greta," Wolfram interjected with relative calm, "What brought this on? Is there a boy that you like?"

Jumping on the chance to get a word in, Greta nodded eagerly. "Yes Papa Wolf. He's such a gentleman, you both would like him if you met him. I-" Greta cleared her throat with a cough before quietly adding, "I think I love him."

Wolfram and Yuuri both flinched and shared another glance.

"Just who is this boy?" Wolfram demanded, narrowing his green eyes. Yuuri put his head in his hands and moaned in sadness.

"His name is Alphonse! He lives in the castle too and he's really kind." Greta let a little frustration and self-mockery bleed into her voice. "Look, I don't even know if he likes me, I just thought I would tell you. I mean he probably just wants to be my friend and I'm reading way too much into it, but I really want to at least _ask _him if he likes me too."

"No you can't, Greta! You're going to be locked into your room until you're thirty-" Yuuri began his rant, the king clearly becoming more agitated.

"You're right, Greta." Wolfram interjected over the king's order. He sighed as his family stared at him with gaping mouths and wide eyes. Greta finally snapped out of her stupor and pinched herself to see if she was dreaming. "Really?" She squealed rather childishly.

Yuuri glared at the traitorous blonde demon. "Yeah Wolfram, _really_?" Wolfram rolled his eyes at the look of betrayal Yuuri was giving him. Honestly, the king really needed to stop being such a wimp! Greta was only a year younger than when Yuuri became demon king _and _betrothed. It wasn't like he wanted to see their daughter grow up either.

Wolfram was supporting Greta because of the fracture behind the girl's the cheerful mask, it was filled with pain that was familiar to Wolfram. After all, he had dealt with his fair share of that pain and feeling of unworthiness when it came to his own fiance, before he ever thought Yuuri would love him back. Even though Yuuri returned his love and married him, Wolfram still remembered the ache of not knowing if he was _good _enough for the double black. He never wanted his daughter to feel the same sense of neglect and rejection. If what Greta needed was his and Yuuri's support in finding love, then so be it. In his heart, Wolfram only wanted his daughter to find the same true love he and Yuuri found, and if he had to smack the double black until Yuuri agreed with him then so be it.

Greta began bouncing in her seat, unable to contain her excitement despite her desire to display her maturity. "You guys will love him, I just know it! He's so polite and kind and humble-"

Wolfram interrupted the princess before Yuuri could combust in rage and despair. "Greta, how about you invite him to dinner with us sometime? That way your fathers can meet him and decide if he's worthy of you or not." Wolfram made a mental note to ask Conrad and Gwendel if they know any soldiers who had a son named Alphonse.

Barely able to contain her delight at this understanding that she was not expecting from the blonde demon, and unwilling to push her luck further, Greta beamed and agreed. "I would love to, I'll ask him today!"

Wolfram eyed the double black who appeared to have reached his limit in this conversation. "Greta, how about you tell Lady Cecilie about your new friend, I'm sure she'd love to hear about it." Wolfram cringed internally about the _advice _that his mother would give the princess about boys. He prayed that the 'free love' enthusiast would keep in mind that Greta was still a young girl.

Greta bounded out of her seat immediately, "Of course! I'll tell Lady Celie right now!" She raced out of the room before Wolfram could change his mind and take back the incredible offer.

Once she was gone, Yuuri immediately turned on his husband. "Wolf! What the heck was that about? All of a sudden you're suddenly alright with our daughter liking some boy we don't even know?" Yuuri glared at the blonde waiting for an answer. This was completely unlike the fiery demon, he was normally on the same page as him!

Wolfram shifted in his seat, mostly to alleviate the pain in his injury. "Oh come on Yuuri! She's fourteen years old. In the Demon Kingdom she's technically old enough to get engaged if she wants to." He rolled his eyes when he saw Yuuri bristle with outrage. "Yuuri, if we aren't supportive of her first crush then she might rebel and run off with this boy. As her parents it is our duty to both protect her from dangers _and _support her as she grows up."

"Greta would never do that!" Yuuri shouted in denial. Wolfram raised his hand and placed it on Yuuri's cheek, thumb stroking soothingly. He saw the stress lines in the king's black eyes and knew that most of his anger was coming from something else.

"What else is going on, Yuuri?" Wolfram asked gently, his hand moving to tangle in the double black's hair. Yuuri tilted his head at the contact and closed his eyes, before snapping them open again. "Nothing is going on! The only thing I'm worrying about is Greta!" He declared shoving away from the table and standing. Wolfram leaned his head on the back of his chair and watched warily as the king began to pace.

"Are you sure?" He hated that Yuuri internalized all his dark emotions under his mask of cheerfulness until they bubbled up and he broke down from the stress. Usually, Yuuri would reveal his doubts and fears in the middle of the night, and woke Wolfram up to confide in him. Wolfram didn't mind losing sleep to comfort his love, despite his mock annoyance when he was awoken. Especially at times like this he wished Yuuri would wake him up more often, if only to give the king peace of mind.

Yuuri rubbed his hands in his dark hair harshly, making them stand every which way. Wolfram ignored the stirrings in his lower abdomen at Yuuri's appearance that only occured right after lovemaking and focused on getting answers out of Yuuri. "Come on, wimp. Out with it."

Yuuri paused and stared straight ahead of him, body facing away at an angle so that Wolfram could only see his profile. Then the king spun around and plastered a mimic of his usual grin that wouldn't make it to his eyes. "Don't worry about me, Wolf, I swear I'm alright. This whole thing with Greta and her-" Yuuri twisted his face in a grimace, "friend really bothers me." Yuuri walked back to the table and scooted his chair closer to the blonde before sitting and resting his head on Wolfram's uninjured shoulder.

He sighed wearily and Wolfram lifted his arm to run it through the black hair to help him relax. "I just feel so twisted up inside, and it doesn't help that my other half is making appearances more often than normal. It kinda freaks me out that I don't have control over myself, you know?" Yuuri closed his eyes as Wolfram tilted his head to rest it on top of his.

He felt the chuckle run through Wolfram's body and he snorted in disbelief. Trust Wolfram to laugh when he was pouring his heart out, oh well, at least he wasn't falling asleep- yet. "Oh Yuuri, you shouldn't be surprised that the Demon King is making an appearance, he tends to do that when it concerns me." Wolfram's voice was pleasant, accepting, even when Yuuri knew that every other spouse would've run away in fear at the thought of being subjugated to the Demon King's uncontrolled personality.

"I love him, Yuuri, because he's _you. _Just a less, er, wimpier you." Now Yuuri was unable to contain his laughter, feeling the unique type of relaxation that only Wolfram's type of reassurance mixed with insults could bring. Honestly, he didn't know what he would ever do without his Consort, he probably would've sank into the depths of insanity a long time ago. Yuuri and Wolfram drifted into their own thoughts for a while, allowing themselves to just be close to each other in peace. Yuuri came back to awareness when a random thought crossed his mind.

"Hey Wolf?" He asked, startling the blonde out of a light doze who raised his head and blinked bleary emerald eyes at Yuuri. Unable to contain himself Yuuri leaned forward and kissed the prince consort on the lips, his hand coming up to tangled in silky blonde hair. "Mmm," Wolfram murmured into the king's mouth as Yuuri ran his tongue lightly against his lips. Yuuri felt Wolf's lips curl into a smile before letting himself get lost in the warm cavern of his mouth. Pulling away, Yuuri pressed a gentle kiss onto the blonde's forehead and grinned at the sudden wide awake expression that his husband had.

"We have to move from these chairs, remember what Gisela said about putting too much pressure on your side? You need to lie down and relax." Wolfram lightly shoved the double black and rolled his eyes playfully.

"For the love of the Great One, I'm not some damsel in distress." Yuuri reached out to help lift the blonde from his seat into the wheelchair parked nearby that Yuuri had retrieved from Japan the previous day. Wolfram swatted his assisting hands grumpily, a dignified pout on his face and rose into the wheelchair on his own. For all the fuss that Wolfram had made when Yuuri showed him the black contraption, even he had to admit it was easier on the wounded. Annisina was now designing her own replica to have around for injured soldiers in the medical ward.

"Yuuri, you know you have to give Greta your approval, right? Your opinion means the world to her and it's not fair to keep babying her forever." A wide grin suddenly spread across Wolfram's face.

"After all, we couldn't want her to get betrothed and start forcing her way into the poor boy's bedroom every night, would we?'" Wolfram couldn't help but add teasingly, sometimes he couldn't resist irritating the double black and no one was better at it than he was.

Yuuri opened his mouth to respond when outside the dining room window, he spotted soldiers clad in green steadying their horses, swords slung on their belts. "What is going on?' He exclaimed, causing Wolfram to raise his head and follow the king's gaze to the window.

"Looks like Gwendel is readying the cavalry, something must be wrong this doesn't look like a practice exercise."

Jaw clenching, and black eyes narrowing, Yuuri grabbed the handles of the wheelchair and quickly rolled Wolfram out of the room and down the hall.

_Unbelievable. Just what is Gwendel thinking? I thought I was supposed to be the king around here… so why is it that everyone else seems to know what's going on and I don't?_

Passing by guards posted along the corridor, Yuuri quickly made the necessary turns until they reached the front of the castle. The cool, ominous air wafted Yuuri's face when he wheeled Wolfram outside and out into the army's gathering place.

Maneuvering around the rowdy men and prancing horses, Yuuri and Wolfram finally reached the center and spotted Gwendel was pointing at a map sitting atop his stallion. He was barking orders to his second and third command, but was too far away for Yuuri to hear what he had to say. Yuuri was rattled to see Gunter next to him, nodding and listening to what Gwendel was saying.

"Gwendel!" Yuuri shouted authoritatively, "What is going on here?" Wolfram flinched from the sudden loudness of his voice sounding behind him. He stalked quickly over to his chief of state, gathering enough of his power to look menacing but not fully in the Demon King mode.

Gwendel glanced up from his map and paused mid-order at the sight of the king. His facial expression was unfazed and unimpressed by the double black's irritation. Face still set in the imperishable frown, he stared down at Yuuri and Wolfram when they halted in front of his horse. The stationed men around them quieted their conversation in curiosity to hear what their king had to say. Wolfram straightened his posture in the chair even more, obviously hating to show weakness in front of his brother's men.

"We have recently received word that several towns in the kingdom have been attacked. This could be sign that someone is trying to overthrow the Demon Kingdom. I am going to lead my some of my men to one of the villages, while Conrart will lead his men to the other." Gwendel gave a quick scan of his surroundings, to gauge if his troops were prepared to ride or not.

"Gunter, keep an eye on Saralegui. I want to know if he so much as breathes wrong, understood?" Gunter nodded once in answer. "Consider it done."

"I'm coming with you." Yuuri's voice was calm, but completely serious. He was the king of this castle, and he would protect his people no matter what.

"Your Majesty-" Gunter began to plead anxiously, silver eyes begging the double black to stay in safety.

"I will not allow it." Gunter growled, his horse beginning to shift in place. "You are the king, and we cannot spare any men to be your guard. Even now, we are wasting time when people are being slaughtered. This is an obvious ploy to lure you out, maybe to even get through the lessened castle security to get to the Prince Consort." Wolfram's head jerked back in shock, before a scowl set across his face.

Wolfram glared at his older brother with indignation. "Gwendel, even injured I can still protect myself and look after the castle. You know I would die before I would let us be conquered! If Yuuri wants to go let him," Wolfram gave a proud wave of his hand, "I can handle things here."

Yuuri reached forward, grabbed the blond locks and gave a firm yank. "Nobody's dying, Wolfram. You hear me?" Wolfram snorted and crossed his arms.

Gwendel suddenly pulled up on the reins, and ordered, "Enough of this. I will not allow our king to throw his life away because he wants to play hero, I am leading my men to take care of the situation now. If things become out of our control, we will send for you, Yuuri, but I'm done discussing it." He pulled his horse around and began to spur him into a gallop. "Move out!"

Yuuri and Wolfram began coughing and squinting as clouds of dust and dirt were kicked up from the horses hooves. Yuuri pressed closer to Wolfram's chair as the soldiers narrowly maneuvered around them, caught up in the excitement of the ride and oncoming fight. Finally, the vibrations in the ground began to fade as the last of the men exited the castle grounds.

Gunter turned to face the king, Yuuri had lost track of him in the stampede, and smiled with fake cheerfulness. "Oh Your Majesty, lets get you inside shall we? It was so noble of you to stand your ground to protect this castle. Oh it brings tears to my eyes!"

Yuuri sighed and began turning Wolf's chair to head back inside. "I'm not stupid, Gunter. There's something going on, isn't there? I want a full report after I get Wolfram to lie down." Wolfram jerked his head up from where it was slumped on his arm. "I'm fine Yuuri! I deserve to listen in on what's happening, don't you dare put me to bed like some sort of child!" Yuuri wheeled the indignant blonde inside the main corridor, Gunter following close behind.

"I know." Yuuri murmured gently. "I'll fill you in later on everything I promise. Gisela did say that you can only be up and about for short intervals only. I don't want to re-injure yourself." Wolfram gave a snarl and tried leaning his head back to glare at Yuuri, however Yuuri could see in his eyes that the blonde's pain had grown and only force of will was allowing him to remain awake.

The double black continued to wheel his consort into the royal chambers and ignored further complaints, stopping by the bed and lifting the exhausted blonde out. Gunter remained slightly outside of the door, unwilling to disturb the royal couple.

Yuuri situated the bed sheets and pillows, while Wolfram shifted into a comfortable position. As expected, as soon as the blonde's head touched the pillow he was out like a light. The double black leaned over and kissed his cheek before softly whispering, "Love you." A smile stretched across his face as he allowed himself to gaze at his consort for a few minutes, Wolfram completely relaxed was a rare sight.

Sadly, his mood soured as soon as he left the room and shut the door quietly behind him. Gunter was still waiting on him, leaning against the wall and giving instructions to the two guards that remained on stand-by near the royal chamber at all times. Yuuri gave a quick scan of their faces- no one he recognized- before giving his full attention to his trusted advisor, "Alright, let's talk. Tell me everything you know."

* * *

A figure stood around the corner, observing the demon king and the silver-haired man talking in the hall before both of them began walking in the opposite direction. Due to past knowledge on the demon king, the spy believed that they were headed to the king's office for a briefing. Giving a complete scan of the surroundings, the mole casually made it's way down the hall and past the two guards stationed. Putting a hand to the door calmly, the spy waited with baited breath to see if anyone would question the action. When no one shouted, "Traitor!" The spy walked in and shut the door behind it, and saw the chance that it had been waiting for. The Prince Consort lay sprawled on the bed, sweat shining on his forehead while his chest rattled with pants. He appeared to be in pain, and that his body had shut down to heal. The mole sauntered over to the bedside, withdrawing a small pouch from it's pocket.

The pouch was poured onto a pale hand and it's contents were held up to the natural sunlight. Black rocks mashed down into powder glimmered with faint minerals of silver. Shoving down any feelings of remorse the deed might have brought, the intruder reached out a hand to open the consort's mouth. Pouring the powder while keeping his jaw open was difficult, and the blonde quickly began gagging in his sleep when it hit the back of his throat. Retreating immediately, the mole shoved the remaining contents back into it's pocket, and stalked over to the door and pulled it open. The blonde started to cough violently, waking him from sleep. The figure darted out the door before emerald eyes could spot it, and walked down the hall without looking back.


	5. Chapter 5

**Authors Note: ****So honestly I thought about discontinuing the story, it's just not getting a lot of feedback and that's hard for a new writer. I think I should've written the entire story out BEFORE posting a chapter. Ah well! Learning experience I guess:) I don't think I'll be able to finish this, but to those who reviewed, favored, and followed- it really means alot! I'll keep trying to post new chapters and improve!**

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Yuuri kept sending worried glances at Wolfram. The blonde was just not acting like himself, almost as though he was in a complete daze aside from sudden fits of hacking coughs. His blonde bangs stuck to his sweaty forehead and his complexion was worse than Yuuri had ever seen it. For the moment, the Demon King and his Consort were lounging in the shade of a large oak on the castle grounds that they usually used to picnic. Yuuri was resting with his back against the trunk, with Wolfram's head resting in his lap as he sprawled on his back.

The double black was extremely anxious because Wolfram had said very few words since yesterday. Gisela had assured him that it was normal for demons to feel comatose after injuries explaining that it was the body's way of healing. However, the kind words did nothing to soothe Yuuri's nervousness.

Yuuri let out a deep sigh and ran his hand softly through the golden hair as Wolfram lightly dozed. He had hated leaving Wolfram's side the previous afternoon, but he had to find out information about the severity of the attacks. Gunter had not been much help, only explaining that so far they can only speculate as to who is behind the plot to attack the neighboring towns of the castle. The double blacks gut twisted again as he stared down at his spouse's resting face. He couldn't believe that they were still no closer to finding their enemies than before!

It enraged him to no end that he contained all this power to protect his people, and his enemies wouldn't even do him the decency of fighting him head on. Yuuri's hand tightened in the blonde locks as his body tensed. During his discussion with Gunter yesterday, the Demon King had once again threatened to reveal himself. He just couldn't understand why he couldn't gain control of himself. He had been talking to _Gunter _for crying out loud, what did the Demon King think he was going to accomplish? He remembered the slight anxiety that his chief aide could not hide as blue sparks danced along the double black's skin. It had honestly felt as though Yuuri was being torn apart from the inside as the Demon King unleashed an unholy roar at being confined.

Yuuri tilted his head back with a thump against the bark. It was strange though, as soon as the Demon King threatened to appear, he vanished into complete silence. Yuuri wasn't able to hide the relief that he had felt when he was in control over his own mind. Gunter had also released a bated breath that the double black hadn't realized he was holding. It was sickening, how eager he was to promote peace and yet now he was the biggest ticking time bomb in the kingdom. A wistful smile tugged at his lips as he glanced down at the fire demon, volatile was supposed to be Wolf's job.

Gwendel had arrived early this morning, after dealing with the disruptions in the towns. A frown marred Yuuri's normally cheerful face. No, disruption was the word his advisors used so as not to worry him, _slaughter _was better used for what occurred to the town's people. Yuuri winced as he recalled the rude awakening that had forced him out of bed in the early hours of the morning.

Gwendel, most likely to prove a point, had marched in and pulled the demon king out of bed, who hadn't had much sleep due to Wolfram's coughing. Yuuri had then been summoned to the office, walking alongside Conrad, who had returned almost at the same time as Gwendel. Gunter had made them all hot chocolate, His Majesty's favorite drink, and it had been a sign to Yuuri that something horrible had happened, and that Gunter was attempting to comfort him beforehand.

Yuuri flinched as he remembered how his fears had come to life, and the way Gwendel's voice had resonated as he listed the utter destruction of the villages. Gwendel, who Yuuri had never seen a moment of weakness from, had sounded _shaken. _As the men in the room gathered their thoughts, Conrad had informed the king that there were no survivors and that the towns had been burned to the ground.

Yuuri ran another trembling hand through Wolfram's hair. Yuuri had wished so badly that he had just left it at that, that he hadn't been so damn curious and eager to know all his confidants' secrets that he hadn't asked for the details.

His own people had been butchered, led like sacrificial lambs to the center of the town, and tortured. Symbols had been seared into their backs of those of all ages, though the attackers had specifically singled out children. There was a massive sundial drawn in the dirt, and the villagers were then burned alive.

Yuuri could feel the absolute fury of the Demon King, and the waves of power that kept wanting to break through and take control of his body. The only reason Yuuri was in control was that the Demon King felt as helpless as he did. With no target, the power remained just beneath his sternum, and the enormous pressure made it hard to breathe.

The attack was deliberate, an obvious act against the Demon King that said, _just look at how helpless you are, look at what I can do to them. You think that measly Demon King of yours can save you? _

Yuuri had wanted to pay his respects to the villages, and to see the transgressions for himself, but was held back as his advisors warned him that luring the demon king out of the castle would undoubtedly make the ememies' attack easy for them. And as much as it pained Yuuri to admit it, they were right.

Suddenly, the blonde demon stirred, his head on Yuuri's lap shifting as his eyes squinted open in the sun. Wolfram smacked his lips once before closing his eyes and dozing off once more. Yuuri couldn't help a small smile, his previous thoughts abandoned. The Demon King's anger resided as he felt reassured by his mate's presence.

"You know, it's funny. I've always been the one to wake up with my head on your lap, not the other way around." Yuuri grinned smugly at the dozing blonde. "It's nice."

Wolfram let out an irritated growl, but didn't bother opening his eyes to glare at the double black. Instead he picked up a manicured hand from the grass and smacked Yuuri in the chest.

"Shut up, wimp." Wolfram muttered, attempting to escape back into his dream world. Yuuri, however, wasn't ready to return to his musings about the deaths of his people or his plans on what to do about them.

"Wolf, guess what?" Yuuri asked, as he watched the sunlight stream down on the blonde's face.

Wolfram made a half hearted sound of inquiry that still managed to sound exasperated.

"I got out of all my paperwork for the day, isn't that awesome?" Yuuri fought back a laugh, knowing he was deliberately flaunting his _wimpiness _to his husband, who hated when he avoided his kingly duties.

Wolfram managed to squeeze his green eyes open to glare at Yuuri in annoyance. "So this is what happens when I'm not around to supervise you. I swear this kingdom would go belly-up if it weren't for me."

Yuuri rolled his eyes indulgently and shook his head. "Of course, Wolfram, I don't know how I managed living on my own before you. I'm surprised I survived." Yuuri shot back teasingly.

Wolfram gave an amused snort, and tilted his head back arrogantly. "Finally you admit the truth." Yuuri sighed and felt himself relaxing more. It wasn't the first time that verbally sparring with Wolf helped to ground himself firmly to reality. They were content to sit in the shade and bask in silence for a few moments. Then all of a sudden, Wolfram's body racked with coughs.

His face grimaced in pain as he almost hacked up a lung, and his abdomen tightened enough to strain his injuries. Yuuri rubbed the blonde's belly, gazing at Wolfram with enough concern that the blonde's face pinkened with embarrassment.

"I'm fine." Wolfram grated out between the coughs. He once again berated himself for being a burden on the young king's shoulders.

"Maybe I should get Gisela? You've been sick since last night." Yuuri's questioned, voice laced with worry. The double black began scanning the grounds as if the castle healer would appear by will.

"No." Wolfram grated out, attempting to get his breathing under control. "I promise you I'm fine."

Yuuri gazed at the blonde skeptically for a few moments as Wolfram stubbornly continued to fight off coughs. He backed down as he studied Wolfram's arrogant tilt of his jaw and chose to take the fire demon's word. He was simply not in the mood for an argument right now. Yuuri glanced to his side and saw the abandoned wheelchair parked a few feet away. Dinner was going to be ready soon and it would take him a while to get Wolf to the dining room. Yuuri began the slow process of maneuvering himself out from under the blonde, without jostling him too much.

"Oh by the way, before our schedules get too hectic," Yuuri swallowed bile in his throat at the thought of more slaughters to come, "we need to sit down with Greta's friend and see what kind of character he is."

Wolfram assisted the process as much as he could, holding himself into a sitting position and then lifting his arms so Yuuri could lift him. The fire demon's face twisted in reluctance at the inevitable emotional suffering he and Yuuri would have to go through as fathers. Greta's first love.

Yuuri picked up the blonde and set him gently in the mobile chair, trying not to laugh. The petulant look on Wolf's face mirrored his own feelings about the ordeal. Yuuri released the brakes and began wheeling Wolfram across the grass, trying to avoid the sporadic beds of flowers that Lady Cecelie insisted on planting on a whim.

"Yuuri! How lucky of me to catch up with you!" Both demon king and consort jumped and whipped their heads in the direction of the Small Shimeron monarch. Wolfram let out a disgusted growl and gave a "hmph" of disdain. Sara was quickly picking his way across the grounds and Yuuri, politeness ingrained into his soul, stopped and waited for him.

"Now, Wolf."

"Don't you dare tell me to be nice to that swine."

Sara stopped gracefully to Yuuri's side, and well out of reach of the bad tempered blonde demon in the chair. He gave a kind smile to the double black before reluctantly asking the Consort, "Ah Lord Wolfram, how nice for you to be seen up and about. I hope your healing has been coming along well?"

Wolfram continued to stare straight ahead in silence, obviously signaling that the King of Small Shimeron wasn't worth the air he was breathing. Yuuri's cheeks began to color slightly in embarrassment at the intended awkwardness.

Sara cleared his throat decidedly after a few painful moments, and turned his attention back to Yuuri. "Oh Yuuri, how I've missed you in the past couple of days!" Sara curled his arm into Yuuri's and began walking forward, forcing the Demon King to push the wheelchair forward while being hung on by the other monarch. Sara continued babbling excitedly, "Of course it's to be expected with all that is happening with you and I don't blame you in the slightest! In fact it shows just how diligent of a king you are, _truly-"_

"For the love of the Great One, will you shut up! I swear you are a walking headache!" Wolfram snapped in annoyance. "Don't you have anything better to do?"

Yuuri let out a quiet, "Wolfram!" and glanced over at the other king, who appeared deflated and hurt. Yuuri gave a gentle smile to Sara, but refused to excuse his husband's behavior. After all, Yuuri was suspicious himself about how Sara completely changed his tune from a couple of days ago. He worried that the compliments and care that the human king showed was simply an act to gain his favor- _again. _

Sara gave a hesitant smile back. "I apologize Lord Wolfram, it was not my intent to worsen your condition, and to interrupt your alone time with your spouse." Wolfram's eyes rolled back to stare at Sare balefully. "I'm sure," was all Wolfram responded.

Several guards jogged past them in the courtyard, a few wore Wolfram's blue colors signalling they were part of his elite guard. The elites bowed low to the injured prince, before continuing quickly on their way. Yuuri could hear Wolf's quiet sigh, and felt a pang of remorse that the active fire demon couldn't train with his soldiers for a while. The double black stretched out a hand and placed it on Wolfram's shoulder. The blonde glanced back and forced a smile for the troubled demon king.

"Is there any progress on capturing the suspects responsible for assaulting the Prince Consort?" Yuuri blinked away from Wolfram's emerald eyes and focused on Sara again. Wolfram's shoulder tensed under his hand.

"No, nothing yet. Gwendel and Conrad are searching really hard though." Yuuri responded lightly. Sara's eyes widened behind the spectales in shock. "Nothing? Why Yuuri that's terrible! Perhaps I can send Belias off to assist? And maybe send for my best trackers from home? There is simply no way that I can allow my dear friends to be plagued with this.. this… incompetence!"

Wolfram half rose out of the chair furiously. "How dare you insult my brothers and my kingdom you useless-"

Yuuri firmly pushed Wolf back down into the seat before the fire demon strangled Sara. He could practically hear Gunter moaning about the lack of diplomacy over the Small Shimeron King's dead body.

"That's enough, Sara." Yuuri snapped, struggling with Wolfram. "We are perfectly capable of conducting our own investigations, thank you for your offer." There. Gunter should be so proud, that sounded rather kingly.

"Incompetence." Wolfram muttered under his breath in between coughs, and crossed his arms. "Unbelievable."

Sara backed up a few steps, clearly understanding that he had overstepped his bounds. "My apologies." He responded smoothly, bowing low. "It was not my intention to insult your advisors, Yuuri."

Yuuri nodded quickly. "I'm sure, Sara. Wolfram and I must be going now. I guess we will see you at dinner?"

Sara gave a wide smile and pulled a long piece of blonde hair behind his ear. "I will be delighted to spend more time in your company, Your Majesty."

"Wimp! Punch him in his lying face before I call you a cheater!" Wolfram growled, ready to take a swing at Sara. Yuuri shoved the chair forward immediately, eager to get out of that situation and away from Sara's sly smile. Had it always seemed so fake?

Walking away and into the castle, Wolfram began coughing again, and his hair sheened with sweat under the light of the torches. Yuuri couldn't help but feel that his whole life was going to start crashing around him.


End file.
